


We Were Meant To Bend, Not Break

by uncaringrose



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: AU, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Im tired, M/M, Romance, Slow Burn, Some angst, acion, elements listed in the first chapter, keith and shiro are adopted brothers au, korra and asami are only mentioned, none of them are the avatar, she/her pronouns for pidgey, the bbys are on their own journey, they are all badasses
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-28
Updated: 2016-12-27
Packaged: 2018-09-12 18:34:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,408
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9084703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/uncaringrose/pseuds/uncaringrose
Summary: Shiro was a non-bender that last time Keith, his brother, saw him. However, a lot of things happen in a year. Avatar Korra had changed many things. Spirits had crowded Republic City, the airbenders were back, and more.
That said, bad things don't just go away. And the Avatar can't always be the hero.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Lance: Waterbender  
> Pidge: Waterbender  
> Hunk: Earthbender  
> Keith: Firebender  
> Shiro: Non to airbender  
> Allura: Earthbender  
> Coran: I'll get back to you on that

 

_“We’ve been getting some strange readings from a swamp by-”_

_“Lieutenant, what do you mean “strange readings”?”_

_“Well, colonel, it seems like some sort of spike in energy. Maybe it’s nothing, but the research department looked antsy.”_

_“Very well. Send a search team. I’m sure General Shirogane will be more than happy to quell their uneasiness.”_

_“Of course, sir.”_

_Shiro was, in fact, more than happy to go. His good friends had family stemming from the swamp, and was overjoyed when they had been assigned to him. Together, with a small team, they ventured into one of the vast swamps located in the Earth Kingdom. Sailing there on a small vessel. His brother was saddened to see him go, but was happy for him. Takashi had worked hard to become the General he was, being a non-bender and all._

_They had been welcomed with open arms when they arrived. The village they arrived at was warm and rural. They stayed there one night before gathering their things and descending into the marsh._

_“You know, son. Some of our ancestors very well could have lived here,” Mr. Holt had remarked. Shiro remembered the longing smile that appeared on Matt’s face. In one swift movement, the vines in their way had been bended to curl around the trees._

_“Yeah. Too bad Mom and Katie couldn’t come,” the shorter researcher replied as they waded into a particularly deep pool of water._

_“Well, we’ll just have to take them back souvenirs- What was that?”_

_“Hm,” Shiro murmured, looking at the older gentleman. Everyone had stilled. A device in Matt’s hand began to whir softly._

_At first it seemed like nothing. Maybe a blip. An animal snapping on a twig. Or a rock tumbling into the water._

_But slowly and steadily, up in the trees, dark silhouettes began to appear. The large limbs holding ten at a time, all peering down._

_“Who are you,” Shiro had called out. Matt gasped to the right of him. There was a splash and he was gone. One by one, his men were sucked under. The General could barely speak as he thrashed in the water, groping for his friends._

_Then he was being pulled, pulled, pulled-_

_That was a year ago._

_***_

“Lance, have you seen my bag,” Hunk inquired as he peeked under his bed for the fiftieth time that morning. His roommate shouted something back that he couldn’t quite understand. “WHAT?”

“I said, you might have left it in Pidge’s room! You know,” his friend continued as he sauntered into the room, heaving a large bag over his shoulder, “when you wouldn’t stop screeching about going to an Earth Kingdom village and HAD to stay at her room for FIVE HOURS to gush about it? Oh, and also when you dragged me with you? And then proceeded to show us EVERYTHING you were gonna take with you? By the way, we didn’t need to see your underwear, man.” The tan young man huffed and straightened his green jacket. Something he had first found at a shop in the Fire Nation when he started going to school there (THAT, he might add, was NOT red, much to his relief when he had found it). He once explained to his friends that he felt a little awkward being a lone waterbender in a city full of “pyromaniacs” and had decided to sort of “conceal” the fact he was one. That meant not wearing a whole lot of blue.

Of course, this is excluding the fact PIdge was also a waterbender. (Lance WAS always a drama queen.)

Honestly, Hunk missed his friend’s old outfit he first wore when they met. He was proud to be an earthbender, of course, but he did enjoy waterbender fashion if he was being honest. What? It was soothing to look at.

“Oh yeah! Thanks, buddy.” Ignoring the last comment, the larger boy jumped up and scampered out of their shared dorm. They had to be at the docks by noon, or else they would be left behind. Their school was strict. Of course it was. Any bender would be lucky to get in. It was one of the most prestigious bending schools in the nation, and world. Most graduates ended up somewhere high up in any military or field of their choosing. Of course, being in the Fire Nation still meant most of the class were firebenders.

And honestly? Many waterbenders still tended to avoid the Fire Nation. There was still some vague animosity between them. Lance was still getting used to all the red. And the heat. Man, did he miss the Northern Water Tribe. But his family had been so happy for him, and he was excited to make a name for himself.

He was going to be a General one day. And nothing was going to stop him.

***

“Hunk, my man, calm down.” Lance was patting his friend’s back as he bent over the side of the ship. Feeling slightly bad for the fish. “I know you get seasick easily, but COME ON. You shoulda run out of things to throw up ten minutes ago.”

“Don’t underestimate him, Lance,” Pidge chided, looking up momentarily from her journal.

The air had a salty tinge to it and Lance peered across the water. His fellow classmates chattered around him, some making their way to their cabins. Others looked nearly as sick as Hunk. A swell of pride overcame the lanky teen, reveling in the fact he had practically been born on the sea.

Finally emptying his stomach, Hunk sank to the ground beside Pidge, still looking fairly green. Shuddering, he held his head in his hands and took deep breaths. Sighing, Lance joined him and continued his soothing gestures.

It wouldn’t take them too long to reach the Earth KIngdom village they would be staying at. The latest being the next morning. It was supposed to be an educational trip to watch some well-known Earthbenders in an arena, then groups were supposed to write up a report on their forms and fighting styles. Boring in reality, but the strange trio were excited nonetheless. Hunk had never actually been to a proper Earth Kingdom village, having been raised in the Fire Nation. Lance was always up for learning new techniques, and Pidge wouldn’t really say why she was excited. She just kept writing things in her general and occasionally staring off into space.

“I think I’m gonna go lay down, guys,” Hunk suddenly murmured as he stumbled to his feet. He looked considerably less sick, but his friends both agreed he could use some rest and didn’t stop him. Pidge went back to her journal as soon as he turned the corner, and Lance didn’t feel like attempting to coax her out again. Instead, he peered out across the water once more-- this time puke free.

A few fishing boats could be seen in the distance, as well as a couple of small islands. Lance occasionally waved at them. Why? He wasn’t really sure. Actually, he was starting to feel a bit off. Not sick, but maybe anxious? The boat suddenly rocked and he almost lost his footing. Pidge snorted beside him. He kicked her softly in the thigh in response. She stuck her tongue out at him, making him roll his eyes. But he smiled as he turned back to the water.

The midday sun beat down relentlessly, giving the clear water a red tint to it. A few clouds puffed along, offering little help in the fight against the sun. If he looked long enough, Lance could occasionally make out some fish swimming by.

Something small and blue darted underneath the soft waves suddenly, disappearing after a few paces. It was bright, like a small light had been dropped. Most certainly not a fish. Lance felt his body go rigid, and he found it difficult to look away from the place it had vanished. His fingers tightened against the railing.

“Hey, Pid-,” he started, but she cut him off.

“Lance you owe me twenty bucks! Ha!” The small girl had somehow gotten ahold of a newspaper and was smiling broadly. Lance was about to ask what she meant when she unceremoniously shoved the paper in his face, pointing excitedly at a headline that read:

**AVATAR KORRA FINALLY CONFIRMS RELATIONSHIP WITH ASAMI SATO**

“Told you they were dating,” Pidge declared, smirking smugly at Lance’s awestruck expression. “Looks like you won’t be able to use your ‘legendary’ pick-up lines on her, hm?” The small girl hugged the picture of Korra holding her girlfriend’s hand in the air. They appeared to be walking in a park- most likely in Republic City. Seeing as some of the Spirit foliage was gathered behind them.

“Hey! Excuse you, but I still can! I have hope, Pidge!” The taller water bender pouted as his friend cackled.

“Sure. And Asami will punch you in the face- and you’ll thank her!”

“Wow, Pidge. You wound me. I thought we were friends!”

“Who told you that?” Still giggling quietly, Pidge collected her things and stretched. “Anyways, I’m gonna go lay down too. I’m pretty tired.” Lance nodded and turned back to stare back at the waves for a quick moment, contemplating bringing up the strange light. “Oh. Is Lance thinking? I would think you’d avoid ever having worry lines on your ‘perfect’ face.”

“You are just full of sass today,” he replied, deciding that he could always bring it up later.

“I’m tired and haven’t had coffee, so yeah. See you later.” With that, the small girl followed Hunk’s footsteps, leaving Lance to his own devices.

And for a second, the boy could’ve sworn he saw the small blue light rise up out of the water to _look_ at him.

Maybe he should get some rest too.

***

The three friends got six hours of proper sleep before the sirens started blaring.

It was sudden and loud. Hunk and Lance both fell out of their beds and groaned, then scrambled to tug on their shoes.

“STUDENTS,” the intercom through the blares, stopping everyone in their tracks. “STAY IN YOUR CABINS. RED ALERT. RED ALERT. I REPEAT, STAY IN YOUR CABINS.” It cut off.

Red alert? Danger of unknown entity. Yeah, Lance and Hunk weren’t interested.

There was a knock at their door and they looked at each other. Nodding to one another, they inched their way towards it. Ready to fight whatever was outside.

Then Pidge got impatient and all but broke down their door.

“Come on, we gotta hurry,” she hissed, beckoning them to follow her. She didn’t bother explaining before running back down the hall. The temptation to stay and NOT follow her was strong with Hunk, but Lance was already out the door. So he went as well. Who knew what would happen to those two without him?

On the deck, several of their teachers stretched across the railing as a light moved across the dark waters. The three children pressed against the wall behind a few crates to hide themselves from view. When he squinted, Lance was able to find out they were right by a small island with a very dense forest, but they were steadily picking up speed and distancing themselves. There was an urgency in the way the boat rocked unsteadily.

“Hold him down, he’s going crazy,” Iverson’s voice growled, and was followed by the sound of a struggle.

“Please, I’m Takashi Shirogane-” All three of them held their breathe. It couldn’t be.

“Knock him out. It’s much too late to deal with this right now.” What was Iverson thinking? This was a legend! A hero!

“NO,” Shiro screeched, making Hunk jump and a crate to topple over. But no one noticed, because at the same time three teachers, including Iverson, were sent flying across the deck by some invisible force. But all of them could feel it, that pressure and intensity. All three of them had felt it before, shortly after airbenders had started popping up, of course.

_They had gone to the market together. It had been a nice day. But suddenly a woman had come crying and staggering her way down the street with a distraught man chasing after her. One would have thought they had gotten into an argument at first glance, but the stand the trio was at was very suddenly gone. Pieces of wood and fruit strewn across the ground and the man running it had been slammed against the side of a building. None of them had moved, because that sensation was incredibly new. The force had missed them by a fraction, but had blown their hair back and knocked their bags out of their hands. It was terrifying._

“We need to help him,” Pidge announced, her brow crinkling.

“Pidge, I don’t know, man. This-” Hunk was silenced by his small friend looking at him with a look of pure determination. A flame flickered in her eyes, and he gulped while finally nodding in agreement.

A few more teachers ran towards the area Takashi was, only to be sent flying as well. They would have to be careful- the man was most likely very scared or even a bit delirious. Cautiously, Pidge peeked around the corner, but a crate slammed against the wall beside her and she had to duck once more.

“I can’t get a good look at him,” she whispered as a few flames shot passed them. Their teachers hadn’t given up quite yet. “Lance, put up an ice wall in front of him so THEY can’t get to him.”

“Gotcha, Pidgey.” Lance took a moment to steel himself before he propelled himself forward, launching himself over the railing of the ship before the air bending man could catch him. This was going to be tricky.

Forming an ice pad under his feet, he rose himself up towards the railing again. He could feel the powerful gusts of air being flung at him as he raised his arms, bringing a large wall of water in front of himself to block it. Clenching his jaw, Lance pushed against the force until the wall was seated on the ship’s passageway before freezing it solid.

He needed to work out more.

Slumping against the ice wall, Lance watched Pidge carve a door out of it for herself so she could slip through. Was she crazy?

“Watch out!” Hunk threw himself in front of the lanky waterbender, tossing up a thin wall of coal he found in a crate to fend off the flames heading their way. “Is it just me or do they seem extra angry?” The teachers were now actively aiming at the two, and Lance had to get himself up and moving again to help block them.

Good thing they were in the middle of the ocean.

“Pidge! You alright?” Lance was growing nervous. She hadn’t said anything and she had run head first towards the guy. Receiving no response, Lance’s blood ran cold and, using most of his remaining energy, another ice wall had been tossed up. This time, in front of Lance and Hunk.

The teachers were shouting at him but he didn’t care. Him and Hunk ran towards Pidge, forgetting that General Shirogane was also on the other side.

What they found wasn’t what they expected. The General’s head was in their small friend’s lap as she frantically tried to wake him. They fell to her side. The man was dressed in practically rags and covered in dirt. His long sleeved shirt was covered in holes, and he was wearing mud-caked gloves to boot. His feet were bare, and there was no visible clues as to how he got on the ship in the first place.

“Pidge, what’s wrong,” Hunk asked, placing a large hand on her shoulder. Her face was red with frustration.

“He- he called me ‘Matt’ and then passed out as soon as he saw me. I don’t- what do we do?”

“Give him to me,” a voice answered. All three of them looked up to see a dark-haired boy on an eel hound. His indigo eyes bore into them as he slid off the saddle and stalked over.

“Keith?” Lance looked angry, mixed with a nice dash of annoyed.

“Do I know you?” Keith sounded like he didn’t actually care about the answer, and just began to pick the passed-out General up. With notable difficulty. The taller boy looked as though he was going to respond, but he noticed the steam from their teachers melting his wall.

“Hunk, help get him on that eel hound, then jump ship,” Lance ordered, ignoring the surprised look Keith shot him. Pidge picked up on the plan and pulled her bag on tighter as she stood up.

“I- I don’t know, man. That sounds dangerous-”

“HUNK. NOW.”

“Got it, got it.” Without missing another beat, the large earthbender scooped up the unconscious man and plopped him on the back of the eel hound as Keith climbed on.

“Wait, what about you,” Keith asked as Hunk sped walked over to the railing. His eyes widened as Pidge hopped over, followed by Lance.

“Perks of having waterbender friends,” Hunk replied with an unsure smile, slipping over the edge a lot less gracefully than the other two.

“Come on, Mullet! Lead the way,” Lance called up, and Keith snapped the reins for his eel hound to take off. When they landed on the water, he saw Hunk clinging to Lance while they stood on a block of ice. Pidge was the same way, but on the other side of him. “I’d much rather leave than have detention for the next year.” With that, the teens took off with Keith in the lead. Takashi balanced awkwardly behind the smaller bender, and he had to be careful to make sure he didn’t fall off.

“Lance, we got company,” Pidge shouted, sending ice shards behind them. However, it wasn’t their teachers. That much was certain.

Dark, hooded figures raced after them on small boats. One in the back, a waterbender, pushed them forward while another aimed at the teens. Water and fire chased after them, relentless. Keith couldn’t offer much help other than sending a fireball behind him- without looking.

“Keith, buddy,” Hunk called out, tapping out the small fire that had hitched a ride on his shirt. “Please stop.”

“Sorry,” the other replied, making his eel hound go faster. They could see a small stretch of land in the distance, and Keith seemed to be aiming for it.

“Pidge, come over here!” Lance sent more shards behind them. The girl did as she was told and steered her ice pad next to her two friends. The brunette attached the two ice blocks together and froze Hunk’s feet to it. “Keep going and hang on, Hunk!”

“Lanc-” The bigger boy was cut off as his friend dived under the water. The other three followed his directions and kept going, but Pidge and Hunk watched as a small- but strong- whirlpool formed. Sucking a few of the boats under.

“Oh, he’s gotta teach me that,” Pidge declared, steering them safely behind Keith. Two boats were still hot on their tail. With a stomp and a sharp wave, an ice path grew from the small girl’s podium and shot out, hitting the first boat head on and splitting it in two. The occupants were sucked under the waves.

“One more to go,” Hunk said, a broad smile on his face. He still held a bit of the coal from earlier, and with steady motions, he pegged the waterbender controlling the boat hard enough for him to fall.

“Miss me?” Lance appeared and gripped onto the side of the eel hound, too tired to control his own platform. However, seconds later he found himself falling onto sand, staring up at the night sky. His chest heaved.

“We’re here,” Keith announced, hopping off his eel hound, ignoring Lance’s huffing. He tried pulling off Takashi himself, but Hunk quickly stepped in. “Thanks.”

“No problem, mullet man,” Lance groaned out, sitting up. He was soaked, and he shivered ever so slightly.

“Jeez. You’re a mess.” Pidge walked over to the sniveling boy and pulled all the water off of him like she was lifting off a thin blanket. Keith and Hunk watched in mild awe. “Though, you should totally teach me how to do that whirlpool thing.”

“Sure. First step: Don’t swim like you’re a bird being plunged into lava.” The girl glared at her smirking friend.

Then dropped the water back on him.

“Hey!”

It was going to be a long night.

***

The stretch of land ended up being Keith’s unofficial home. For the most part, it was only made of sand and a lone shrub that looked like it was barely thriving (his name was Tom- but Keith didn’t need to tell them that.) However, there was a cave opening. Or were those called coves? It was too late and all their brains were slowing down. The firebender led them inside anyways as he helped support the unconscious General.

“I heard sirens off in the distance and thought I’d check it out,” Keith explained as they eased down a small passageway. It was a bit slippery and had a few steps, so they had to be careful. “When I got to your ship I saw people flying in the air and screaming. I was going to leave, but I heard someone say Shiro’s name and had to check.”

“Wait, how long were you just watching?” The lanky waterbender glared daggers at the other boy. “Are you saying you could have helped us?”

“I mean, maybe? I wasn’t going to jump in on a random attack. For all I knew it was some dumb training you guys were doing.”

“None of our training is dumb!”

“Oh trust me, some of it is.”

“Alright,” Pidge interrupted, fidgeting with her glasses. “That is enough arguing- but Lance, the weird kid is right. Some of our training is dumb- not a word!” Hunk chuckled as his friend trudged next to him, a pout curling onto his features. “We need to worry about waking Shiro up to figure out what is going on.”

A flash of blue light appeared briefly at the end of the passageway.

“Uh,” Lance supplied, stopping in his tracks. “Did anyone see that?”

“See what,” Hunk replied, following Lance’s gaze. The light was gone, though.

“Stop messing around.” The brooding firebender kept going, pushing past the other. However, the taller boy couldn’t shake the odd feeling settling in his bones. In fact, it seemed to only worsen as they continued their descent. They must have been a few yards under the sea by now, Lance thought.

“Who do you think those guys were, anyway?” None of them really had a response for the earthbender. Hunk struggled for a minute with the man in his arms. His arm was difficult to move, oddly, and felt like it was made out of metal. That didn’t seem right. “Hey, Pidge, pull up this guy’s right sleeve for me real quick.”

“Why?” They all had stopped.

“Just do it.”

Taking a step forward, the short waterbender took the man’s sleeve in hand and rolled it up, her face morphing into one of shock as she did so. It was quiet as they all looked at the metal casing wrapped around Shiro’s arm- it was, in fact, a casing upon further inspection.

“Whoever those guys were, I’d bet money they had something to do with this,” Lance whispered. They all shared a brief look before Keith led them down the last final steps into a small cavern. A place to build a fire was in the middle, with a few fresh sticks that the boy quickly set aflame, and a “bed” made of random fabric was off to the side. Hunk set Shiro down onto it.  

“Okay, who are you guys?” Keith leaned against the wall, a tight frown on his lips. Now that they were in the light, they could see he was wearing a mostly black outfit- most likely so he wouldn’t be seen in the dark- and he had tossed on a frayed red crop top jacket. It looked horrible, but none of them commented on it. There was a time and a place for everything.

“Hunk Garret,” the big guy responded, a tad awkward. He tightened his headband, so he had something to do with his hands.

“Pidge. Pidge Gunderson,” the girl added from her spot beside Shiro. She didn’t seem too focused on the conversation.

“Personally, I’m appalled you don’t remember me, fire breathe.” Lance crossed his arms and aimed his disgruntled look towards the boy asking questions. “We were in the same meditation class.”

“Oh, sorry, don’t recall,” Keith replied, rolling his eyes.

“Whatever. It’s Lance McClain.” Grumbling to himself, the lanky boy went to sit next to Pidge. She had taken of Shiro’s gloves and was looking at the metal around his right arm. Slowly, he began to stir.

“Matt…” Shiro’s eyes blinked blearily. Pidge and Lance jumped back to give him space. Keith was quickly at his side, helping him sit up. “Where is…”  A hand came up to rub his face, and when he took it off and saw the firebender he stilled. “Keith? What are you doing here? What’s going-” Suddenly, the words stopped coming and the General’s eyes grew wide. “Oh no. We need to leave. We need to- There’s something coming-” The man tried to get up frantically, but his limbs wobbled and he fell soon after.

“Hey, Shiro. It’s okay. You’re safe,” Keith soothed, patting his brother on the back. “Take it easy.”

“Keith. They’re coming.”

“Who's coming?”

“The people who did this to me,” Shiro whispered, but they all could hear it. He raised his right hand in front of the fire, watching it glisten for a moment. “Galra.”

And just like that, he was out once more.

***

The night had been long, as they predicted. After deeming the three others could be trusted, Keith agreed to sleep shifts to watch over Shiro- who would occasionally wake up, but only barely and would have to be coaxed back to sleep while he whispered and blubbered about the danger that was coming.

Keith was worried he wouldn’t come out of it.

However, when morning came, the firebender was greeted by the sight of Hunk attempting conversation with his tired brother. Shiro was sitting up, his knees bent, with bags under his eyes. A small, relaxed smile was on his face despite obviously still being tense. But, even Keith had to admit, Hunk was strangely soothing- even when you just met him. Lance and Pidge were nowhere to be seen, and he panicked for a moment. What if they had gone to contact someone?

Just as he was about to jump up and run out, Lance came walking into the cavern with five fish trapped in a bubble of water. Pidge followed close behind with an armful of fresh sticks. Catching sight of the awakened firebender, Lance huffed and froze the water bubble to set it down.

“Happen to have a knife, mullet?” As much as the other boy was getting on his nerves, Keith’s stomach growled and he gave up the hunting knife he carried. Looking it over once, Lance shrugged and went to work gutting the fish as Pidge arranged the sticks she had gathered.

“Keith!” Shiro stumbled over to him, with the help of Hunk, and flung his left arm around his shoulders. His right arm settled next to him. “It’s been so long. Or has it? How long has it been?” The smaller boy’s heart dropped for a moment, scared to tell his brother the actual time frame. The others went quiet, save for the ripping noises as Lance sliced open the third fish.

“It’s been a year, Shiro.” The words sliced through the air, and Shiro’s arm fell from his brother’s frame. A bit of his hair had gone white, Keith noticed. Did he not pay attention last night?

“Everything's a blur,” the man whispered, placing his hands in his lap. “I can’t believe I was gone for so long. I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m just glad you’re alive.”

“Me too.” The brothers shared a brief smile before Pidge got Keith’s attention to start the fire.

“So, what’s the plan here, guys,” Hunk asked, helping Lance poke sharpened sticks through their soon-to-be breakfast. “We can’t exactly go back, ya know? I’m sure Iverson is looking for us now. And we have a believed-to-dead General with us that probably needs medical attention.”

“We need to warn the people of the Earth Kingdom that something is coming,” Shiro quickly replied. His eyes were watching the flames as they licked at the cooking fish. “The Galra are coming, and they’re not friendly.”

“Who are the Galra, anyway?” Pidge sat next to the man, her eyebrows scrunched together in concentration.

“I… I’m not sure. My memory is fuzzy, and I don’t have any names, but I know they’re dangerous. And we have to be careful.” He took the roasted fish that was handed to him. Lance passed the rest out and went to sit beside Hunk. “I’ve missed so much, haven’t I? Hunk was telling me the airbenders have returned- and that I’m one of them.”

“Yeah,” Keith sighed before smirking softly. “Looks like you aren’t gonna be known as one of the infamous non-bending Generals anymore.”

“Haha. That’s one way to look at it- but I don’t think I’m a General anymore.”

“Um, Takashi?” Pidge looked distressed as she fidgeted in her spot. Her fish was practically untouched. “Do you know what happened to your crew? Like, where they went or if they were captured too?” Shiro’s frown returned.

“Yes. They were captured at the same time as me. It all happened so fast… I don’t know where they are anymore.” He took the canteen Keith handed him and took a swig. The fire was growing smaller, but the firebender made no move to keep it alive.

“I see,” Pidge said, but didn’t say anything else. It was quiet for a spell before Lance saw something out of the corner of his eye. It was that damn light again, and it flew right past the cavern’s entrance and up the passage they had walked. Without missing another beat, Lance flew to his feet and took off after it. He was going to find out what it was.

“LANCE,” Pidge and Hunk yelled, following after him with similar confused states. Without even thinking about it, Shiro and Keith took off as well.

They ran up the passage and onto the fresh sand. The ocean howled lowly around them, and they finally caught up to Lance. Who was standing on the very edge of the bit of land, looking out at something.

“Told you I saw something,” he breathed, taking a step out in the water, only for ice to form under his feet. Pidge was about to comment he hadn’t even bended when the air got stuck in her throat when she saw what he was walking towards. It was a small light, hovering lazily in the air. Blue and ethereal. It seemed to brighten everything, despite it being morning.

The ocean wind tickled their faces as they watched Lance walk further out, almost like he was in a trance. Perhaps they should have felt the need to stop him, but they didn’t. No danger could be felt. Actually, all of them felt oddly calm looking at the little blip. It was hard to tell what it actually looked like- surely it had a form.

As Lance got closer, the small light drifted over to him. Almost eager. It was hard to tell just how far out the boy was when it finally flew into his cupped hands, but the light that surrounded him was breathtaking. Blue outlined his very form and expanded until it felt like it was going to burst. Water kicked up and the wind grew so strong all four of the onlookers fell over. But their eyes never left Lance. Suddenly, he started laughing. Not a cocky laugh Pidge and Hunk were used to, or one of his obnoxious ones. It was light and joyful as his hair whipped around. He rose ever so softly into the air, mere inches off his perch, and his entire body was drenched in blue. One could not tell his features, but his laugh rang out- the only sign it was still him.

And then it stopped.

His color returned, and he landed softly back on the ice. His back was still facing the others as he looked into his cupped hands, a bright smiled adorning his features. Slowly, his legs moved him back, knowing exactly where his path was.

“Guys,” he spoke softly, extending his hands out to them to look. “She’s so cute!” Hunk almost wanted to smack his friend for ruining the atmosphere, but had to admit he was correct. In the tan boy’s hands sat a small, almost transparent storklion cub. It was barely bigger than his palm. Its blank eyes stared up at them, and the white and black wings- tinged with blue to match the rest of its body- stretched out. Its tail flicked. “She says we have to go.” Lance was smiling. He apparently couldn’t stop. In the far off distance, Pidge could make out another land mass- most likely an Earth Kingdom village. She hadn’t noticed it before. “She has to take us somewhere.”

“How is she,” Hunk began, pointing to the small thing in Lance’s hand, “going to take us anywhere?” While he talked, Keith had dug out his eel hound whistle and blew into it.

Only to find it broken.

“Just my luck,” Keith grumbled bitterly, tossing it down. “Now I don’t have a ride.”

“Ease up, mullet-boy. I trust Blue,” Lance quipped, slipping back to his usual self. “She says she can carry all of us.”

“Okay, okay,” Pidge interrupted, “what are you going on about? Are you suggesting this thing is talking to you? How?” She put her hands on her hips. Ignoring the fact he said such a tiny thing could actually carry five people.

“Uh, kinda? She’s telling me things in my head. We’re connected, somehow.” The others gave him odd looks, despite what they had witnessed barely two minutes prior.

“Wait, what is a spirit doing all the way out here? I thought they were only in Republic City.” Hunk poked Blue with his pointer finger, his lips puckered in thought. However, she shot away and towards the edge of the water. Lance watched her closely.

A small paw reached out and rested on the surface, and her head tipped back to look at the lanky teen. He nodded in understanding.

“Shiro, she says this involves all of us. And the Galra. We REALLY need to go, but it is up to you.” Lance looked up at the man he was talking to with set eyes. “You’re the General.”

Dressed in rags, metal pressed into his right arm, and with his brother at his side again, Shiro thought. He thought long and hard. The silence was suffocating. He’d been gone for a year, the Galra were planning something, and now a spirit had appeared to them.

The next course of action only felt natural.

“Let’s go,” he answered, nodding at Lance. The waterbender smiled before turning to the storklion cub. Walking over to her, he plucked her off the ground and after a moment, he tossed her into the air.

“LAN-” Pidge was going to chide him, but once again she stopped as she saw the cub begin to grow, and grow, and then glow. The light was almost blinding. Blue ran across the sky, her wings stretching, and her paws becoming the size of houses. Water reached out for her as she landed on top of it, far too large to even fit a fourth of herself on the plot of land that they stood on. She was still glowing, but it was soft, gentle even, as she stood gracefully on the ocean.

“Time to go,” Lance announced, but not in his usually loud voice. He sounded airy and calm. The ice path was still there, and they all started for her. When they approached her, she shifted down so they were level with her mouth, and opened wide.

“She’s not gonna eat us, right?” Hunk went rigid, but Shiro helped push him forward as they followed Lance inside.

As soon as they entered, they were each plucked up by some invisible force and placed inside her cranium. Lance at the center of her forehead. It felt odd, floating with nothing holding you up, but they were all calmed by the sudden purr that went through all of them. The low rumble was soothing, even though they were several stories in the air.

The wind was becoming almost violent, Lance could tell. It was most likely from Blue’s presence. Tentatively, he raised his left arm and and right leg, to act as though he was about to bend a small pail of water. That was the image that appeared in his mind, after all.

Blue gave a jolt and rose to the air. Hunk took a deep breathe. Lance swung his arms in an arch and shifted his hips ever so softly- transfer the water to the trees, his mind saw. For a moment, he could feel the cold of his home in the Northern Water Tribe inching up his arms, but never numbing him.

There was a wooden block he had to cut through. There was something under it he had to get to. He NEEDED to.

Angling his left hand, he swung it down hard as his right leg moved forward slightly. Was he moving slow? He couldn’t tell.

Then they were tipping down, and the ocean was a breathe away. The wooden block was slashed through, and water came bursting through, enveloping them.

The ocean grew still, and the wind died down. The clouds puffed along. And if one looked close enough, you could see a small, blue light disappearing into the dark depths of the water.  
The flame in the cavern died down, not to be touched again for a long, long time.

**Author's Note:**

> So, I've been working on this on and off for a couple months. At 6,000 words I decided this really needed to be split into a couple parts for the first part, so that's what I'm doing. Also, I wanted to put a bit out there to see if people would actually like this idea before I wrote, like, 20,000 words and hate myself.
> 
> Anyways, I don't have a beta reader so feel free to tell me if you find any errors! I would actually appreciate it! And I would love it if you guys drew something for this or had any suggestions (as I'm kinda going in blind since I haven't had a lot of time to plan this.)
> 
> Wanna send me something privately or share artwork with me (even if you just found it while scrolling and think it'll inspire me cuz I know i need some)? Please send it to me on my blog: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/uncaringrose
> 
> Hope you guys liked this first part and have an awesome day!


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